No Ordinary Wonderland
by BuTtErFlY's.cHaSeR
Summary: Alice just was enjoying a nap one sunny afternoon after her lessens while eagerly awaiting the arrival of her furry friend. Instead she found herself whisked away to an underwater "Utopia." Well, Utopia will just have to double as Wonderland, won't it?
1. NotSoGolden Afternoon

Alice Liddell was thoroughly exhausted. Her brain hurt after six whole hours of history teachings from her elder sister, Lorina. It was one of the few times the eight-year-old child had challenged herself to pay attention the entire time. She wasn't even rewarded with a simpler lesson or a book that actually had pictures and dialogue!

Lorina merely commented, "Perhaps you could continue 'challenging' yourself in the future. Not all girls receive such extensive education, you know. Be grateful, little sister…" The rest was just blah blah blah. Then her elder left with promises to retrieve tea and maybe a deck of card or a chessboard. Good riddance.

A mischievous smirk crossed the young girl's pouting lips as she laid herself out in the field of wild flowers. It didn't matter, though. Alice would soon be stolen away into Wonderland. Oh, Wonderland…

Wonderland was a fantastic dream that recurred after every lesson since her seven-and-a-half un-birthday. In fact, its faithful repeating and its locals' insistence almost led her to believe her dream was really reality. Still, Alice was not yet convinced. But whether it was real or not didn't matter. Wonderland was wonderful.

_And Lorina doesn't get to go to Wonderland,_ Alice thought, childishly smug. Her eyelids began to droop and her breath deepened as sleep crept up on her. Sometimes she succumbed to unconsciousness before the White Rabbit appeared.

It was immensely amusing to have him shake her awake, all the while whining, "Come _on_. It's time to chase me down the Hole. The Queen has been even grumpier than usual while lacking your presence! She's beheaded more card soldiers than you can count."

There was rustling in the trees and bushes only a few meters away from where Alice was half buried in flowers. The little girl caught a glance of glowing red, which she presumed to be the White Rabbit's eyes, before screwing her eyes shut and trying her best to suppress a giggle. She aimed to coax that response from her furry friend again by faking sleep.

The Rabbit seemed to be calling her bluff, approaching in complete silence excluding the soft sound of flower stems breaking underfoot. A shadow fell over her, cooling her sun-warmed skin.

It momentarily reminded Alice of Lorina's constant complaints of her younger sibling refusing to carry around a parasol in order to remain suitably pale. The thought distracted her from the fact that the White Rabbit wasn't large enough to loom over her in such a way.

It took a pair of bony hands gripping her waist to snap poor Alice back to reality. _Those _most certainly weren't the paws of her best friend! Her eyes opened up wide as saucers in shock. The newly introduced sunlight blinded poor Alice, though. Before she could even realize what was going on, her captor had lifted the child over his or her shoulder where she fell into a… Basket? Cage?

"ALICE!" An extremely alarmed, almost shrill voice called out to the girl currently in the process of being kidnapped. Not her sister… It was the White Rabbit's voice! One of Alice's fists rubbed at her eye in disbelief while the other clamped down on one metal bar. The White Rabbit was chasing after _her_!

His bushy grey brows were bunched together and tears were streaming out of his red eyes. His normally neat and orderly clothes were wrinkled and torn from branches and thorns.

The beloved pocket watch he was always careful to keep safely tucked away close to his breast was flapping in the wind and banging into tress. Using all the ability and acrobatics he ever gained, he tore after her.

The sight of her frantic and frightened friend made Alice equally frantic and frightened. She attempted to climb out but strong winds kept her pressed into the basket and stray branches unsympathetically flicked over her delicate skin. She reached her arms out of the holes with hands outstretched. "Rabbit! Don't leave me!" She cried out, desperately trying to grab onto him.

In a few more great leaps and dashes, the Rabbit's paws were clutched firmly in the panicked child's hands. He murmured comforting things and promises of escape as he tried getting his back legs in the holes to get a better latch on her prison.

However, the "peace" didn't last very long. The kidnapped spun around with the grace of a broken ballerina and swiftly swiped the White Rabbit off using a long, thin-… _pipe…_ -attached to his or her arm.

As Alice watched her childhood pal hit a tree with tremendous force and slid to the ground, she let out a short shriek. She felt the urge to cry out and scream some more in hopes of attracting more attention, but her throat was already hoarse and the air almost completely zapped from her lungs. Still, tears continued to trickle down her cheeks long after she fell silent.

For a few more minutes, the traumatized young thing remained half-sitting up in the metal cage with the wind mussing her twig-filled hair. She stared at the place her best friend laid until he was no longer in sight. Then she slowly, shakily lowered herself down even further.

_What's going to happen to me?_ Little Alice pondered, her body quaking ever so slightly in fear. She curled her legs up against her torso and tucked her knees under her trembling chin in an effort to make herself more comfortable in her holding place. Within seconds, she had passed out.


	2. Madness

There was no Wonderland dream as Alice slept, much to her disappointment. All she experienced was the blackness behind her eyelids, followed by a bright light. For a moment, she was fearful that her kidnapper had strangled her in her moment of weakness and she was going to the great big Wonderland in the sky.

When she awoke to find a large, medical lamp overhead, the captive girl didn't know how to feel. Relieved? _No_. The pit still sat deep in her stomach told her that now wasn't the time to let her guard down.

"…-havior unacceptable. Dr. Lamb will have to be informed. We shall talk more about this later." The masculine voice was sharp with annoyance but still muffled from Alice's only recent reconnection with reality. The light directly above her head was moved away and an average-looking, middle-aged man hovered over her. He was frowning sternly.

Alice raked her teeth over her bottom lip as her brows furrowed. "I'm scared," she told him, _needing_ to say something but having no idea _what_ to say. His frown deepened disapprovingly and the little one flinched.

"You shook her up quite a bit. The best course of action is to put her with the others down at the Orphanage. I have enough patients on my hands at the moment. She could use some time to relax and get to know her new surroundings," he stated professionally before looking over his shoulder.

Lurking in the shadows was the same red glow Alice had noticed hidden in the trees before she was stolen away. Upon recognizing it, she immediately scrambled back as far as the hospital table would allow.

"Stay away from me! You just stay away!" The panicked eight-year-old yelled as she tried desperately to distance herself from the kidnapper as she possibly could. The male attempted to calm her down without success. Her captor advanced almost two meters in one single step.

Alice turned away from the pair of criminals. She jumped off the cot, landing on her feet with a loud _clap_ from the bottoms of her shoes, and took off running as fast as she could. The doctor called for her to return, but Alice didn't even spare a glance over her shoulder.

Doors automatically slid upwards and allowed the girl passage without having to slow down her pace. _If I can find the exit, I can find a road. On the road I can find a town or mobile, which has people. Then those people will help me find home!_ She planned, panting as she looked back to see if anyone was following her.

It proved to be a bad idea. While Alice wasn't watching where she was going, she crashed into someone and handed on her back. "I-I'm so-sorry," she apologized before staring up at that person.

She couldn't believe her eyes.

The man… Something was terribly wrong with him! He looked like some kind of mutant. Not only were his limbs were much longer than the typical tall gentleman's, but his hands and feet were huge. All his joints were swollen and red. His mouth was stretched into an unnatural grin. He was also covered in abnormal patches of hair as well as boils.

"You're… You're gonna help me out, aren't you honey? All I need is one little dose. Come on, help me out!" He shouted, arching his back and crawling over to Alice in a threatening manner as she did her best to inch backwards.

Suddenly, the "man" pulled out a hook from behind his back and raised it high over his head, aiming to bash her skull in with it.

Young Alice let out horrified scream and hid behind her arms in a pathetic act of self-defense. However, before she could feel the pain of his weapon connecting with her head, a high-pitched screech sounded from directly behind her.

"Wha-…?" The mutated man asked in confusion. Alice peeked out and witnessed the same metal pipe that damaged her best friend batting her attacker away. Unlike the White Rabbit, though, this thing bounced right back up on his feet. He leapt towards the little one again, causing her to produce another loud squeal of fear and hide.

No pain. _Just once more_, Alice convinced herself and risked one more glance. The man was staring at her with lifeless eyes, much too close for comfort, but he was moved away quickly. His body slid off the pipe and was tossed away like trash. Blood seeped into white tank top lethargically. Alice finally got a good look at her kidnapper.

The monster was tall and thin. Its limbs were gangly like those of the hook man, but in a slightly more normal way. Also unlike that mutant, its hands and feet were petite. It donned leather and other armor, including a helmet with a bright red eye. The careless way it flicked the large male off it sword left little doubt in her mind that it was strong.

Metal braces reinforced its legs, aiding in supporting all of its enormous armor. It held itself awkwardly, in a way that reminded Alice of her older sister when she was struggling through her adolescent years. Maybe this criminal was also young? Not young as eight-year-old Alice but not as old as twenty-year-old Lorina?

Although she didn't have the best view of what was on the creature's back, Alice could see some scribbled doodles on the cylindrical container as well as some pink bows tied on the cage. _What on Earth do those symbolize?_ She pondered out of curiosity. They looked like of the art Alice herself could draw.

A soothing hum emerged from behind the cold, metal headgear. Her kidnapper flowed over to her side with unstable grace, so as not to startle her. As Alice remained frozen, her movements stalled in result of her terror, it gathered up her still body in its long arms and proceeded to cradle her as if she were a baby.

Pink bows. Soothing hums. Cradling arms. It was… Female? Alice's mind didn't know what to make of this epiphany. After a few cuddles, she rearranged little Alice in her arms and began briskly walking out of the Infirmary Ward.

Reluctant little Alice's new guardian proved ignorant of her every protest. No matter how many times the girl insisted that she was _not_ an orphan and that her family was without a doubt worried sick about her, her carrier refused to even acknowledge her speaking.

"Where am I?" She asked out of boredom part of the way through their journey. It didn't take a genius to figure out she wasn't being held in just any old warehouse. The place was huge, more adequately sized to be a town rather than a mere building. Not that Alice minded. The bigger it was, the better chance of the police finding it.

The feminine fighter paused momentary, as if contemplating whether or not to answer her captive's question, and peered around. Once the echo of her footsteps ceased echoed down the metal-plated hallway, Alice could hear the deranged shouting of someone in the distance. The spherical helmet shifted left and then right once or twice.

Without warning, the young girl was deposited in her familiar cage. Alice grumbled unhappily but made herself comfortable, knowing she would continue inevitably. And, after she was situated, the pair was on the run again.

_There is a surprising lack of windows,_ Alice thought as she observed her surroundings in brief glimpses, _or maybe not so surprising. The criminals most likely don't want anyone looking in, or me looking out._

Alice was only able to gather tidbits of information about her setting, considering she was traveling at lightening fast speeds. It wasn't until they had arrived at what appeared to be a train station did her view improve.

"Where _am_ I?" The little one repeated, now staring at the huge machine in both wonder and terror_. I was right… This _certainly_ isn't any old warehouse. It must be _gigantic_ to actually need a train to transport the goons around! Maybe it's even bigger than a town, _Alice reasoned. Another point presented itself. "Where are we going?"

Alice didn't receive a real answer, merely another soothing hum. However, when the one-eyed monster directed its vision back towards the train, it let out a prolonged, almost hissing noise. It sounded vaguely like a sigh to the eight-year-old. Specifically, one of her older sister's "_This-is-almost-more-trouble-than-it-is-worth,"_ sighs.

The odd, armored creature's toothpick arms reached straight up in the air before bending at the elbows in order to successfully grab the child under her arms and drag her out of the basket. Alice was set down on her feet, and her traveling companion headed towards the operator's booth.

After being carried around for what felt like _forever_, the young hostage was glad to finally be able to walk on her own again. The chances of her being able to escape were slim to nothing. But, still, the automatic door less than three meters behind her looked awfully tempting…

She took an experimental scoot towards it.

The tall, female criminal continued to tinker away with the controls.

Another scoot.

No reaction.

Alice smiled brightly and took one more baby step backwards. _Half way there…_ She thought in excitement.

The train sprung to life. Its lights flickered on, and its motor roared. At the exact same time, the door cranked open. _There was no possible way she could have heard that_, Alice tried to convince herself.

But she _had_. The monster's single red eye turned swiftly to the side. She let out a warning growl, but Alice made a run for it nevertheless. Unfortunately, she was caught before the tip of her little black shoe ever got to the doorway. Alice listened to her captor grumble and sigh before carrying her over to a passenger cart.

It was a dark, little room made entirely of iron. Inside was an over-sized cradle, welded to the floor in order to reduce shifting during travel, and a television screen cross from it.

Her kidnapper wrapped her up snuggly in a couple of the many blankets that the cradle held and even pressed a teddy bear into one of her small arms. A button was pressed somewhere in the blackness, and the TV screen brightened before reading, "Please Stand By," on a grey background. At least it provided light.

As a finishing touch, she hung a handheld radio in a leather sling toned to some kind of old music station on the wall before leaving.

The iron door slid closed with a quiet _whoosh_, and Alice knew it wouldn't be opening any time soon. She sat up in the embarrassing cradle and allowed herself a heavy-hearted sigh. Why, of all places, would the thieves be sending her to an orphanage? Couldn't they just demand the fee from her parents and return her already? She was growing steadily uneasy in such unusual surroundings.

"_Sweet madness… It's sweet madness. Can't wait to get together,"_ the masculine voice on the radio sang. She recognized it as a favorite of her father's, Sweet Madness by Adrian Rollini and his orchestra. He always sang it to her mother in the kitchen on mornings Alice awoke from a sour Wonderland dream. _"Sweet madness… What else can it be? When you're close to me, I'm not responsible, darling."_

"_Your lips, willing, are so thrilling and each thrill lasts forever."_ Alice slid back down into the tiny bed with hooded eyes. She hadn't noticed before how fluffy the pillows were and how the blankets smelt distinctly of flowers. _"Sweet madness… We're mad and I'm glad. It's grand to go mad with you…"_


	3. Dream

_Home! Thank God, I'm home again._ Alice thought as she reopened her eyes to find she wasn't trapped in a dark metal room, but lounging in the middle of elder sister's favorite park. _It must of all been some sort of horrible nightmare,_ she convinced herself while rising to her feet. There was no one else around as far as the eye could see –no Lorina, no Dinah, not even a fellow park dweller– so Alice decisively made her way back towards the Liddell house.

Alice's mind was too busy buzzing with muses of telling her new, crazy dream to Mister Dodgson that she didn't find the lack of other persons in the park or on her trip homeward particularly disturbing… Or at least she didn't until she arrived at the house.

"Lorina, I'm home!" Only the sound of the front door slamming shut greeted her. "Mama, Papa, Lorina abandoned me in the park!" There was still not a sound. "Edith? Did Mama, Papa, and Lorina go out for brunch?" Alice peered into each room on the lower level, but she couldn't find so much as a maid to offer her aid. It wasn't until she reached the upstairs guest room, which was currently occupied by Mister Dodgson, did she find companionship.

"Mister Dodgson?" Alice inquired, lingered in the empty doorway.

"Ahhh, Alice. I haven't seen you all morning. Come in, come in… But please close the door behind you." Mister Dodgson's smooth and lightly accented voice came from the large chair placed directly in front of the stove, facing away from the door. It was that chair that all of her siblings clustered around before bed in order to hear their visitor's nonsensical stories. The sight of the chair as well as the sound of their storyteller's voice reinforced the Alice's gladness of her return.

"Oh, Mister Dodgson, I have a whole lot to tell you! I had another dream! Except this time it was a rather scary dream. You see… Instead of the White Rabbit, a red-eyed Cyclopes stole me away to some sort of medical facility. It was armored, like King Arthur's knights, but it was a _girl_! And–" Alice rambled on excitedly.

"Alice!" Mister Dodgson replied loudly, a bit too sharp and too serious to be in good-humor. "Why don't you come a little closer –better yet, come sit on my knee– before continuing with your constant chattering?"

At his condescending attitude and obvious insult, Alice couldn't help but feel a little insulted. "It seems I've caught you at a bad time. Perhaps we can speak more at another time. The actual reason I came up here was to search for my parents and my sisters. Do you know where they have gone?" She answered, remaining as polite as she could force herself to remain.

"Why you spiteful, little brat! Is my company not good enough for you?" He hissed at her but did not make a move towards her. However, Alice could hear his fingers digging into the fabric of the chair arms.

"It certainly is not, with your current fowl mood! When you're ready to make polite conversation, I'll be out in the gardens!" Alice shouted back and spun on her heels to storm out of the room. She had already thrown up the door when a hook –a_ hook!_– whizzed past her head. With a growing sense of dread, she turned back to see Mister Dodgson had finally left his seat.

Except Mister Dodgson wasn't really Mister Dodgson! He was wearing his usual outfit and had the same hair but, other than those features, he resembled the mutated man from the medical facility.

"Miss me, honey?" Mister Dodgson's voice was hoarse and hostile, more a stranger's than his own. Suddenly, more hook were launched at Alice. The blunt end of one collided with her forehead. _Run_, she realized a few instances too late, _run_! Adrenaline coursing frantically through her veins, she took off as if hell hounds were nipping at her heels… Which wasn't too far from the truth.

Alice sped down the endless hallway with the violent stranger she mistook for her friend crawling on the ceiling a couple inches behind her. Just when she began to feel her legs turn to gelatin, a pair of arms reached out from one of the doors and dragged her inside that particular room.

"No, no, no, no, no!" The frightened child shrieked at the top of her lungs as she beat at the limbs securing her.

"Stop, Alice! I'm on your side." At the familiar tone and face, the young girl went limp.

"Lorina," she cried out in relief, embracing her elder sister as best she could in such an awkward position. "Lorina, it's Mister Dodgson. He's become something… Something unspeakable!"

The young woman nodded somberly. "I know, I know... Not, look, I have a plan but you're going to have to do as I say. Crawl into my wardrobe and close the doors. Don't so much as peep out the keyhole until I give the word. Understand?"

Alice answered positively and, although she was skeptical about her elder sister's plan, asked no questions. She heard the door open, Mister Dodgson giving off a battle cry in the background, and the door close again. Seconds past like hours. It seemed as if Lorina left the safety of her bedroom an eternity ago. Not so much as a whisper penetrated the soundproof, wooden door. And, just when Alice was going to risk opening the wardrobe a crack, the bedroom door creaked open.

Everything slight noise was magnified at that moment. Alice could hear the doorknob's mechanics click out of place, the shuffle of feet against carpet, and pounding of her own heart as if it were trying to escape her ribcage. She squeezed her eyes shut and leaning back into the fabrics that held the comfort of her elder sister's scent. A puff of cool air blew against her face as the wardrobe doors were pulled open from the outside.

Suddenly, Alice was pulled into safe arms. A humorless, relieved chuckled burst out of her throat as she burrowed her face into Lorina's neck and wrapped her limbs around her. They curled up against one another on the bed, both scared beyond belief but happy to be alive and together. It took a while for Alice to open her eyes again. However, when she finally did, the false sense of peace vanished.

Once the younger girl could see for herself, her gaze was immediately drawn to the doorway. Mister Dodgson's corpse was pinned to the wall directly opposite of the door. His eyes were round as marbles, bulging out of his head, and his face was pulled into an insane grin, as if he were laughing at her from the realm of the dead. The scene was completely grotesque, but some part of Alice was urging her to take a closer look.

He was being held against the wall by something lodged in his chest. _It couldn't possibly be one of his hooks. _Alice thought, craning her head but not bothering to untangle herself from her elder sister. It looked a lot like a sword, but the blade was straight, round, and much too large to be used for fencing. There was no hilt, but there did appear to be something hanging off the end.

_Is that a glove?_ Alice pondered, right before realization hit her like a punch in the gut. It was a brown, leather, elbow-length glove with an odd device attached in addition to that needle. She had last seen it on the arm of a…

Every muscle in Alice's body seized up. Unable to move her head, she coerced her pupils out of their straight stare and to the very corner of her eyes. Instead of light brown ringlets and a lavender bonnet, her vision was filled with bluish-grey metal and blue crayon fishes drawn its surface. In a blur, the neutral blues were replaced with a malevolent, glowing red.

Alice screamed and screamed and screamed, as if her lungs were filled with an infinite amount of air and she would never stop.

"Wake up! Wake up, goddamn you, _wake up_!" An unfamiliar voice shouted. It didn't belong to Alice, Lorina, or Mister Dodgson. A blast of pain assaulted her side over and over again. The mysterious voice and throbbing of her ribs brought Alice out of her nightmares and into nightmarish reality.

As she sat up from the concrete floor, Alice's head twisted in every possible direction. Still, there was nothing much to see. Her location had once again changed, but it was apparent she was nowhere near home.

Finally the tear-stained child turned to the source of her consciousness. A completely normal girl kneeled by her side, armed with a pillow. She was about Alice's age, with ragged, shoulder-length, blond hair and round, brown eyes. She wore a simple white sundress and bunny slippers.

"Who are you?" Alice murmured, her voice broken with despair.

The girl sat down beside her, hugging the pillow to her chest, and offered a broken smile of her own. "My name is Cindy."


	4. No Happy Home

"_The grass is the springiest. The bees are the stingiest. The birds are the wingiest. The bells are the ringiest. The hearts the singiest. The arms the clingiest. Way back home…"_

"The radio's nice, ain't it? I believe this is… Way Back Home by Bob Crosby and the Bobcats? Mommy loved it. We lived in New York, but my mommy was from somewhere down in Florida." Cindy commented lightly as her newfound friend took some time to let the new information sink into her brain.

"Rapture?" asked Alice in a muted voice, too preoccupied gazing out of the window to notice Cindy's small talk. Not that she was intentionally ignoring her… She couldn't concentrate on anything else but the stupid porthole. It seemed to drag her attention back –kicking and screaming– to it every time her eyes strayed. Evidently, Cindy understood and didn't confront her on the matter.

"Yep. Rapture," replied the girl in the white sundress as she refilled both of their little plastic teacups with the matching teapot. The liquid wasn't actually tea, merely tepid water, but it poured a bit of slippery warm down onto her ice-cold knot of a stomach. "It's an architectural wonder, isn't it? None of my constructions could ever survive high-tide, but here is an entire city at the bottom of the ocean!"

"Quite a wonder, indeed." Alice replied unenthusiastically. A school of fish, which appeared as shadows against the luminescent teal waters of the sea and the flickering neon signs of neighboring buildings, were chased past the glass by a Great White Shark. _Shark…_ She thought, her head still reeling. A wind-up toy shark lay on the checkerboard tile floor.

The sedate youth shifted in her seat a bit and reached out as far as she could while maintaining contact with the chair. Hooking the metal fin with the tip of her longest finger, she dragged the toy towards her and began cranking the key. The mechanical shark chomped its jaw open and shut in addition to waving its back fin to and fro after the key was released. It served as a momentary distraction, which she was grateful for.

Alice peered past the shark to the sizeable room laid out in front of her. More wind-up toy sharks littered the floor, as well as teddy bears, water guns, rag dolls, music boxes, and wooden blocks. She wasn't alone in the room with Cindy, either. There were other girls. They drew over the ugly, green striped wallpaper with Crayons, had tea parties of their own, engrossed themselves in the books available, and tugged along red wagons filled with some of the toys shattered a bout.

"We all look so much alike," the blond in a blue dress that proved weary from use whispered, "except you and I have blond hair. And why did that "Big Sister" bring us here?" The shark slipped from her grasp, unnoticed, as Alice turned back to her new companion with blue eyes the size of saucers.

Cindy's pink lips pressed together tightly to form a thin, straight line. "_Those_ Big Sis_ters_," she corrected patiently after fixating her vision on something just over Alice's shoulder. Alice, curious, as always, followed her gaze – and felt ever muscle in her body freeze with terror.

They filed in casually, like student exiting school. Some slung off the air tank and basket strapped onto their backs, while other began attending to the young girls immediately. In a nutshell, they reminded Alice of blank cards. All of the armored freaks looked exactly the same, and they all terrified her. The fearful aura surrounding the latest captive increasing tenfold when one of the Big Sisters made a B-line for her and Cindy's table after removing the gear on her back.

The anxious child followed the example of her valiant friend, and clammed up right away. As the two little girls sat with their hands folded on top of the table an their eyes downcast, the intrigued Big Sister knelt down between them. From underneath her bang, Alice could see Cindy's face flushed with pent-up fury at her sudden intrusion. The Big Sister seemed to acknowledge this reaction with a nod before pivoting her helmet in Alice's direction. The girl unintentionally squeaked before continuing to stare down at her lap.

The uninvited guest to their tea party cautiously scooted closer so that the scared little one wouldn't become agitated any further and dash away. She let out a reassuring purr. It matched the one Alice remembered from the train station exactly. With a gulp, she glanced up at the glowing, red porthole from beneath a thick fringe of blond lashes. The Big Sister straightened up and released another coo of delight at her progress.

And then the intimidating figure did something strange. She inched over so that she was seated directly behind Alice and began styling her hair… Just as her true elder sister, Lorina, might. She combed through the fluffy, yellow locks with her gloved fingers to remove any tangles that might have formed when the young girl slept or was being jostled around. Then, the Big Sister guided all the thick hair into a high ponytail, leaving a lock out by each of her ears, and bound it with a white ribbon. Her final touch was sweeping her bangs so they fell just above her brow.

"Ummm… Thank you?" Alice responded, not certain what to make of her captor's actions. The Big Sister hummed what she suspected to be an, "You're welcome," before Cindy interrupted.

"Don't _do_ that!" Cindy screeched, rising to her feet in the blink of an eye. Her hand darted out and tore the ribbon from Alice's ponytail. The surprised girl yelped before small hands reached across the table to tousle her hair into a rat's nest. "She's not a _doll_! You're not her real sister. And you're not welcome here, so go away!"

The Big Sister's porthole flashed redder than blood and she let out a displeased growl at Cindy's outburst. However, she gradually stood up to go. Instead of leaving without delay, though, she offered Alice her hand first. Alice peered at the irate Cindy and then at the calm-and-collected Big Sister uncertainly for a moment before she shook her head at her captor and moved her chair closer to the courageous Cindy.

The armored adolescent left in a huff. It then became obvious to Alice that the argument had drawn the stares of everyone in the room, including all the Big Sister. She shrank further into her seat, but none of the other monsters approached the two tried-and-true friends to take the first one's place. Once the hungry eyes lost interest, Cindy fixed the mess she had made of Alice's hair in an apologetic manner before beginning to explain her rash actions.

"You can't let them do that. Don't let them style your hair or change you out of the dress you are currently wearing. Don't play with any really unusual toys and flat out refuse to take any tests," the more experienced of the duo proclaimed. The "Why?" must have been evident in her bewildered stare, because Cindy continued a millisecond after Alice looked up at her. "It's all part of a transition. Remember what I told you about the Little Sisters?"

Alice nodded and reached for her teacup. The water had cooled to room temperature. Cindy persisted, "Apparently, Doc. Lamb has a big crush on unity. The only think different about them is the dresses they wear. After a girl has accepted some of these things, the Big Sisters take her away… Back to Persephone, the medical place you were brought to when you first came to Rapture. Then, she gets a slug implanted in her belly and is sent out into the city to drink the blood of corpses." If there was anything except water in her stomach, it would have rushed out at that moment.

"But you and I are blonds, not brunettes like the rest. Why were we taken if we don't fit into the group?" Alice asked, her voice rising in pitch as panic set in.

"My daddy– he was investigating the disappearances of these girls. He was getting… Getting closer and closer to discovering the truth of–… I-I guess he accidently led her back home and…" Cindy's voice, which had been cool and sympathetic ever since Alice had awoken, began to crackle and wobble like a delicate crystal vase when handled too aggressively. Although shocked at her sign of weakness, Alice hastily slung an arm across her friend's shoulders to comfort her. "I suppose after I proved a bit different from the rest, our Big Sister took a liking to blonds. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. It's not your fault," Alice murmured, giving her a tight squeeze. Her gaze was drawn across the room. One of assailants, possibly the one that approached them earlier, watched them from across the room, absentmindedly boiling a jar of water over a flame-filling palm. "How can you tell that we were kidnapped by the same Big Sister? They all look exactly the same."

"Except for the symbol on their left glove. They adopted the symbols of their Big Daddies from the Alpha Series. Plus, no other Big Sister really wants to take care of us 'cause we're different. Our jailer is Theta. The emblem is a circle with a sideways capital '_i'_ inside," Cindy informed her, dragging her chair over to Alice's so they could sit side-by-side. Her bright blue eyes travelled away from the seam billowing out of the jar and down to their supervisor's other arm. Sure enough, the glove equipped with the ferocious ADAM-extracting needle donned the same symbol Cindy described. "Huh," was all she could utter.

"_Way back… Way back… Way back home. No place like home. Sweet home!_" Mr. Crosby concluded on the radio.


	5. Attack

Time past in Rapture the way it did at one of the Mad Hatter's tea parties. Surely it _did_ pass, but no one knew how. Alice didn't know whether she had been hauled up in the Orphanage for months, weeks, or merely days. The Big Sisters checked in on them often, though. Sometimes they all came, and sometimes only a couple came. Sometimes they stayed with them so long that they had time to tuck the girls in for bedtime, and sometimes they only stayed long enough to be certain there was still enough food and water.

Sister Theta was the most frequent visitor, considering none of the other Big Sisters offered Cindy and Alice more than a fleeting glance. On more than one occasion, she came baring gifts. A majority of the gifts were toys they couldn't find in the playroom of the Orphanage. For instance, a porcelain doll much like those Alice's mama kept in glass display cases, way out of reach of the curious 8-year-old. Cindy smashed its delicate china head with a croquet mallet, though. Theta was less than pleased.

The girls mourned the broken, pretty thing but didn't challenge Cindy's decision. After all, she was widely recognized as the leader, much to the annoyance of the Big Sisters. Her defiance and pluck became a prime example for all the other children. Alice was soon dubbed "Vice-President," being the second eldest. Her English background left her unfamiliar with the title until Cindy explained she was the equivalent of a princess. Alice would pick being the Princess of Wonderland over Princess of Rapture any day, though.

Alice almost felt sorry for Theta. Except she couldn't really… Not when she watched girls –girls the same age as her or younger– with hair the color of coffee disappeared from their bunk beds. Not to mention those empty beds were shortly refilled with more youngsters stolen from the Surface. It was Cindy's and her job to protect them, which meant making Theta's job hard.

"When do you think Cindy's daddy is gonna come?" A soft tone inquired. Alice peered up from her illustrated copy of Arabian Nights to see one of the younger girls perched near by. She quickly recognized the speaker by her surplus of freckles and copper-tinted curls. Her ever-present smile made her doe-like green eyes seem less startling large. Sister Psi had abducted her from an orphanage in Ireland.

"Soon, Nora. Very soon," the blond answered, trying to ooze reassurance in her voice. Nora's head tilted gently to the side. Her gaze showed almost as much intelligence as Cindy's. _That means we don't know when, doesn't it?_ The pools of froggy green inquired further. Alice felt her shoulders fall in shame. _Yes,_ her drooping eyelids replied. Though, to the little one's credit, she didn't vocalize her doubts.

"It's okay. I was just asking because some pretty bizarre stuff is going on with the doors in the lobby. Maybe it's Cindy's daddy," Nora said. When Alice gave her a perplexed look, the brunette began skipping down the hallway and beckoned her to follow.

All of the children –clad in either dresses or their pajamas– crowded around the doors. It was the only entrance and exit to the Orphanage. Its opening would be their ticket to freedom. There was a meter of space between the mass of bodies and the action occurring at the door. Alice pushed past them as politely as possible to get a good look of what was happening. _Pretty bizarre indeed_…

Sparks were flying from the locked automatic doors. They left a trail of melted metal. _Maybe it's sort of power tool. Perhaps a laser_. Alice decided, watching the sparks travel upwards and then curve to form an upside down '_u_.' _Like a doorway_. She tentatively pressed her ear to an untouched section of the door. "Daddy?" The young girl called, knocking as hard as she could. There was muffled cursing on the other side. Alice pulled away and continued to watch the progress of the power tool.

The hopeful girls rambled off questions, so ecstatic that some accidentally slipped into their native tongues. "Le papa de Cindy est ici? Hourra! Je ne pouvais l'embrasser!" "El padre de Cindy vino a salvarnos..." "An féidir linn dul abhaile anois?" Despite the fact Alice was unilingual, she understood what they were all clamoring about. "Tell us, Alice! Is Cindy's dad? It has to be!" The doorway was thoroughly outlined. She nibbled on her bottom lip and pressed her ear to the door once again.

Silence. _Whoosh! Beep, beep, beep_. Immediately, Alice attempted to push the crowd back. "Everyone, get away from the door! Get away from the–" _Boom!_

Chaos ensued. The explosions tossed the girls around the lobby like they were ragdolls. Debris broke free to join the flight as well, damaging their fragile forms. When Alice finally hit the staircase on the other side of the room, she felt like the porcelain doll that Cindy had taken a croquet mallet to. Everything hurt. Although her vision was fuzzy, she sought out the doors.

People poured in like mice after their hidey-hole had been discovered. They looked normal enough, nothing like the mutant man or the Big Sisters. But they were armed to the teeth! And they wore these crazed, desperate expressions that worried Alice more than the mutant man and all of the Big Sisters combined.

"Alice, Alice!" A familiar voice called. The noise in the room was so deafening that it sounded a million miles away. Still, Alice built up enough energy to turn her head in the speaker's general direction. _Cindy,_ her befuddled mind answered after a moment of consideration. Alice's vision gradually refocused. Yes, that choppy blond hair and those fretful brown eyes definitely belonged to her new best friend. "I doze off for less than a minute and disaster strikes. Come on, Alice! What happened?" The pile of rubble was shoved off her legs and she was dragged to her feet.

"They drilled through and bl-blasted in. We… We thought it was your dad. We were too close. Much, much too close," Alice panted, examining the room once her head was clear. The other girls affected by the blast were on their feet again and running about like decapitated chickens. Some were badly hurt, with large gashes or broken bones, but the adrenaline rush prevented them from feeling the full extent of their injuries. The children that had just arrived on the scene followed their example.

The intruders chased after the girls with stacks held wide open, like they were collecting bread-and-butterflies and not kidnapping children. Occasionally they paused in their pursuit to raid the countertops. Cindy and Alice stood as still as statues among the mess. Then came the battle cries.

_Screech!_ They sounded off like a chorus. _Screech! Screech! _

"Big Sissies are on the way! Grab what you can and head back to the train!" A pistol-toting man called out. His rough tone echoed throughout the Orphanage. The girls' running about seemed to be paying off… Most of the bad people still carried empty bags. Suddenly, the roof caved in and it was raining Big Sisters. The first shot was fired, and war broke out.

The Big Sisters focused on using melee attacks, unable to risk damaging the possible Little Sisters with Telekinesis and Incinerate, while the normal people focused on surviving with some booty intact. Both sides were frantically gathering up as many girls as they could carry.

"This is our only chance," Cindy hissed and began guiding the bewildered Alice down the steps, towards the exit. Her brilliant plan was brought to a standstill when one of the female trespassers snatched Alice up in the middle of the lobby. However, instead of instantaneously stuffing her into the sack, the lady took the time to get a good look at her.

"My God…" the woman muttered with sympathetic eyes. Alice, achy and on the verge of tears, didn't bother to do anything but cling. "They're only children! They're not Little Sisters! They're just baby girls! Retreat, retreat!" She screamed over her shoulder at the rest of the party. Then she boosted the youngster up further onto her hip and murmured, "It's going to be okay, honey. You're safe with me."

The blond child was able to catch a single glimpse of her companion as she was swiftly removed from the Orphanage. Cindy gave her the ghost of a smile and a weak wave from the contents of Sister Theta's basket, as the red-eyed monster tore at the metal bunk bed frames blocking one of the doorways. She shrieked and shrieked and attacked any normal person that stumbled within her reach. Alice shuddered when she realized Theta's single porthole was focused on her until she was completely out of sight.


	6. Meeting the Duchess

"Marcus, stop quaking in your loafers and cover me from behind! That big Brute is as ill tempered and dangerous as a bull. The only chance of us getting away with all our limbs attached and bones unbroken is if we're quieter than Death," hissed one of the female raiders. Everyone was focused on the living mass of muscle occupying the middle of the room. Including Alice.

The little girl crushed her savior's hand in both of her own. It was calloused and wrinkly in contrast to hers, which was velvety-soft and plush. She grasped desperately at little details, knowing if she looked at the picture as a whole… All would be lost. Already, Alice was no better off than Marcus, trembling and observing her surroundings like a lamb taking in wolves' territory.

The Brute Splicer hobbled over to the edge of the room, grumbling to no one in particular except the security camera. As luck would have it, none of the raiders were crouching near that spot. An opening presented itself and the party was just about to jump into action. Until they spotted what had the Brute so interested in the porthole…

"Big Sister! Big Sister! Fall back, fall back, fall back!" One of the men muttered. Those who had taken a few cautious steps away from cover at the first sign of the Brute's distraction scrambled backwards. However, that scuttling in the inky blackness was exactly what drew the Big Sister's attention.

She paused in her patrols and approached the window again. Like a mermaid or one of the noble ladies back in England, there was no unnecessary twitch in any of her graceful movements. Alice quickly shook away that thought. It was counterproductive. Wading -even fathoms underwater- upright, she pressed her palms against the glass and gazed in.

The symbol on the menace's glove didn't present itself, but the youngster was almost completely sure this Big Sis was not Theta. She did not seem very motivated: more as though this were a chore or a reluctant favor rather than a quest. _Or maybe,_ Alice pondered hopefully, _no one in the Little Sister program truly cared if I'm recaptured. I don't fit into the category of Ms. Lamb's ideal Gatherer. It's possible._ Even if it was only a lie, it was a pretty lie to cling to.

Mister Brute, in all his scariness, jumped a foot when the Hand of Rapture stopped directly before him. "Not my bloody type, luv," he chuckled gruffly. There was always something bigger and badder in Rapture. Although this mutant was the Splicer equivalent of a Big Daddy, he appeared extremely nervous in front of -more or less- an armored, genetically enhanced teenage girl. "I ain't done nothin' wrong!" His declaration of innocence was punctuated by strong punches at her slender silhouette.

The Big Sister did not seem very amused. She emitted a sharp screech and jerked back her needle-equipped arm. The threat was crystal clear. If the parasite didn't show her due respect, she would blow through the incredibly thick glass and drain him of every precious drop of the ADAM that allowed him to keep his position near the top of the food chain. Every member shrunk back, trying to become one with the wall. A Big Sister versus Brute Splicer showdown would be disastrous for everyone in proximity.

Surprisingly, the aggressive Splicer submitted. And, before retreating, he _bowed_ to her. It was an astounding sight for all of the raiders. Even Alice knew Brutes had no fear of defeat due to their inconceivable size. The Big Sister lowered her weapon and scanned the room once more. Eventually, she released a sound, which slightly resembled a sigh, and continued on her way.

"All right, walk softly and keep your guns loaded. Sinclair Deluxe is straight ahead!"

"Are you hungry, darling? Thirsty? The trek back to base camp is difficult for the most strapping of our young men: let alone a little girl such as yourself," the female rescuer inquired with maternal concern. Her kindness almost made up from the rudeness of the rest of her group. Apart from the old woman, there were twelve other who had participated in the Orphanage Raid. Every single one of them leered at Alice with distain. Not one of them dared give her hero the same look.

Alice shook her head vaguely before plopping down on the hardwood floor. Her lace-filled skirt broke her fall but couldn't savage her dignity. After all, she was a young lady! All her movements ought to be graceful. However, at the moment she was too shaken to calculate every twitch.

A tan, wrinkly hand pushed a jar of fresh water towards her. The cloudy-minded child emptied it in a matter of seconds. In truth, the getaway from the Orphanage in Siren Alley to the Sinclair Deluxe in Pauper's Drop had left her famished and dehydrated. At one point, she wondered if she would have been better off staying with Theta and Cindy in her gilded cage than scurrying around Rapture, jumping at shadows. Alice nearly slapped herself for such a thought.

Her stockings were lined with runs and fraying cuts. The scandalous patches of visible skin were badly abused. While her legs had taken the most damage, not a square inch of Alice's being felt all right. Every bruise was simultaneously throbbing. A few of her deeper gashes stung mercilessly, and portions of skin where her blood had dried were itchy. The same hand reached over to delicately tilt her chin upwards in order to assess the damages.

"Duchess," Alice murmured in bewilderment before immediately clutching the hem of her filthy skirt to perform a seated curtsy. There was no doubt in her that this woman was the Duchess. She was short and stout with skin the same shade of pink as her squalling piglet son. Her …presentable… face was rectangular-shaped and fitting with a distinctive nose and eyes as small and dark as black pearls. However, her choice of clothing was more subdued. She wore a modest, emerald green dress dappled by grey polka dots beneath a bright blue-green coat lined with rather ratty-looking white fur.

Still, when the youngster acknowledged the Duchess by her title and weakly curtsied, the lady only frowned. "Duchess? I believe you have me confused with someone else, dear. My name is Linda, and my crew and I are _not_ part of the Rapture Family. Neither are we heavy Splicers," she replied.

Alice's shoulders drooped in disappoint as she peered upwards, appearing forlorn. She had been so looking forward to a familiar face in this strange, dangerous world. "You attacked us," the young girl muttered beneath her breath. "You attacked us because you thought we were Little Sisters. You were going to murder us to get a tiny taste of ADAM. Sounds like Splicers to me." From the corner of her eyes, she saw the woman's other hand, which was safely tucked away behind her hip was crackling with Electro Bolt.

"Linda" hung her head in shame. "We need just enough ADAM to give us an edge on Lamb's followers. One plasmid and one tonic for each member of the Resistance. Not to mention that ADAM is also the most valuable source down in this hellhole. We were –and still are– running low of crucial supplies. And word was that the Orphanage in Siren Alley reopened," she offered with a slight shrug. "We wouldn't have laid a finger on you babes. You aren't Little Sisters, and Little Sisters aren't you."

The explanation was reasonable. Alice could accept it without thinking twice. However, a nagging sensation of total dread settled in her belly. Some miniscule voice in the back of her mind whispered that danger had yet to pass and, if she didn't get out of Rapture soon, she _would_ become a Little Sister. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. "I've got to get out of here. Those trains… Can they bring me to the Surface?"

"I'm sorry, love. They only connect to Rapture. What you need to go Topside is a Bathysphere. Leaving isn't really an option right now, though, because even if you could locate one that Ryan didn't put on lockdown right before he croaked, Lamb will have a torpedo on your tail before you ever got a glimpse of the sun." Although her tone was soothing and sympathetic, the words wounded like a gunshot to the chest.

It wasn't long before Alice's pretty features crumpled with sorrow and her stomach twisted from sickness. Right away, "Linda" tried to rectify the situation. However, her attempts to comfort were more useless than trying to stop the seasons. All the elder woman could do was cocoon the wailing child in a blanket and place her on one of the cots in another room.

After her wild hysterics past, the lost Princess of Wonderland quietly cried herself to sleep… But it seemed that no matter how deeply she slept, there were always voices in the darkness.


End file.
